Take It For What It's Worth

Sexual Assault

Shortly after the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation hearings, actress and activist Alyssa Milano went on MSNBC to rant about how sexual abuse has been institutionalized in the United States. Citing bogus statistics and demonstrating incredible hypocrisy in her support for real sex abusers like Bill Clinton, Alyssa Milano might just have made the worst #FeministFail yet.

National Institute of Justice & Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Prevalence, Incidence and Consequences of Violence Against Women Survey (1998). Retrieved November 28, 2018 from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles/172837.pdf

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Dr. Christine Blasey Ford during her testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee

Hello everyone, this is My 2 Cents.

Like many people, I spent a significant amount of my time yesterday watching the hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee involving Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and Judge Brett Kavanaugh. While I was unable to watch the entire event from beginning to end, I tuned in at every opportunity I had and looked up all the highlights I could find after coming home from work.

There’s no doubt that many people were emotionally moved by the testimonies of both Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh. Even today, many journalists and commentators are discussing how difficult it would be to look either Dr. Ford or Judge Kavanaugh in the eye and tell them they aren’t credible. None the less, I’m writing this article to communicate one thing.

I firmly believe that Dr. Ford is lying.

Allow me to make three things clear. First, I am not in a position to know with any degree of certainty whether or not her claims are true. Unlike mainstream media outlets who frequently broadcast their opinions as fact, I will clearly and unequivocally state that what I present here is solely my opinion and nothing more.

Second, I acknowledge that it is entirely possible that Dr. Ford did in fact endure a sexual assault at some point in her lifetime. While I would not begin to be able to speculate as to who assaulted her or when it occurred, it is certainly a possibility. Further, the purpose of me writing this article is not to call into question whether or not Dr. Ford was ever a victim of sexual assault.

Finally, I believe that Dr. Ford and her family have been victimized by Senator Dianne Feinstein and the Democratic party at large. Dr. Ford testified that it had always been her desire to keep her identity anonymous throughout this process, yet her personal information and her letter to Senator Feinstein were mysteriously leaked to the press at the moment that was most convenient for delaying Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination. I have immense respect for how Senator Lindsey Graham called out Senator Feinstein and the Democratic Party in the way he did yesterday.

Still, I believe Dr. Ford is lying. Why is this the case?

Let me first point out something that I believe should be blatantly obvious, but that no one seems to be talking about. The physical appearance, emotional response, and apparent sincerity of a person does not in itself say anything about whether or not the claims they are making are true! A certain claim could be true even if the person making it appears very stoic and unemotional, and a different claim could be false even if the person making it has tears streaming down his face.

I haven’t lived nearly as long as most of the Senators sitting on the Judiciary Committee, but I’ve lived long enough to have met some very skilled liars. If you’ve spent most of your life around honest people, this may be difficult to believe, but the fact of the matter is that there are many people who are capable of looking very convincing when they lie. Some can conjure tears at will, and the most skilled liars are able to play on the emotions of those who are listening, carefully feeding them what they want to hear at the moment it is most opportune to do so. This being said, the fact that both Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh appeared sincere while giving their testimonies should not even be considered when judging whether or not the accounts are truthful. We have to ask the question, what is the best explanation of this alleged event given all the evidence we have?

Anyone who saw through Dr. Ford’s emotional state and listened solely to what she said during the hearing will realize immediately that there are significant problems with her story. In fact, seeing as she didn’t reveal any new information that hadn’t already been relayed to the public (aside from some deeper insight into her past and present emotional state), everyone going into these hearings should have already known there were significant problems with her story.

Dr. Ford does not recall the date this alleged event occurred, even being unsure how old she was and what year the event occurred. Dr. Ford admits that the she does not know how she traveled to the alleged event, or how she got home afterwards. Dr. Ford’s story about how many people were present at the event appears to have changed several times since it became public. While I wouldn’t expect her to be able to remember definitively how many people were at a large social gathering, the changing narrative is relevant in light of the fact that every one of her named witnesses has denied under penalty of perjury that they have any knowledge of the event in question, and that Dr. Ford admitted during the hearing that no one has contacted her claiming to have been at the same event she describes.

In fact, it seems that there is only one detail that Dr. Ford does remember definitively, and that is that Brett Kavanaugh, with the help of Mark Judge, assaulted her in a bedroom of an unidentified house at an unknown time. Every time someone asks a question that could help verify the truth of her story, Dr. Ford simply doesn’t remember. Could she be telling the truth about this? Sure, but it does seem rather convenient that the trauma caused her to forget all the details that would have been the most helpful in verifying her claims.

Next, we have the testimony of Leland Keyser (Leland Ingham at the time this event supposedly occurred). Dr. Ford has described Keyser as a “lifelong friend,” and therefore most people would assume that if there was anyone who would gladly come to Dr. Ford’s aide in all this, it would be Keyser. However, according to Keyser’s attorney, she has stated under penalty of perjury that she “does not know Mr. Kavanaugh and she has no recollection of ever being at a party or gathering where he was present, with, or without, Dr. Ford.”

When asked during the hearing about Keyser’s testimony, Dr. Ford simply claimed that Keyser has “health issues,” in effect claiming that the one person who should definitely be able to verify the truth of this story is fundamentally unreliable. Again, is this possible? Sure, but it’s terribly convenient for Dr. Ford. This is another coincidence that we’re supposed to just accept. However, the fact that Keyser’s testimony can’t confirm Dr. Ford’s story raises another line of questioning, one that I am very disappointed wasn’t addressed during the hearing.

While being questioned by Senator Feinstein, Dr. Ford claimed that this event was incredibly detrimental to her psychological well being. Dr. Ford claimed that her academics suffered, and that she had difficulty forming friendships for at least four years following the event until she began to move on.

If the allegations are true, this change in behavior on Dr. Ford’s part makes complete sense, but I want you to consider something. Assuming Dr. Ford was an average 15-year-old girl prior to this event, and suddenly became a traumatized victim of sexual assault with manifested difficulties for at least four years thereafter, where were her parents, siblings, teachers and friends in all this?

The Washington Post has already reported that Ford’s immediate family (her parents and brothers) have been incredibly silent throughout this process. Distinct from her husband’s relatives who have submitted numerous letters and statements testifying to Dr. Ford’s character, her blood relatives have said hardly anything. Shouldn’t Dr. Ford’s father have come forth with a statement speaking to how he finally understands why his daughter’s behavior took such a drastic turn for the worse during her teenage years? Shouldn’t Dr. Ford’s mother be able to speak about the many times she begged her daughter to tell her what was wrong? Shouldn’t Leland Keyser be able to testify that she remembers how distant and different her close friend became around the time they were 15 years old? If Dr. Ford does not have witnesses who can confirm this clear shift in her behavior, she either had the crappiest parents, teachers and friends who have ever lived or she is being untruthful. I don’t see another alternative.

While this isn’t nearly as relevant as some of the other points I’ve raised, I also want to mention that Dr. Ford was more or less exposed with regards to the assertion that she is afraid of flying. We were told early on that her hesitancy to come to D.C. and testify was at least in part because she was petrified of flying. However, she admitted under oath that not only did she fly to D.C. for this hearing, she flies frequently for her work, to visit family, and to go on solely recreational trips. Whatever fear of flying she has, it can’t be that bad. This is dishonesty plain and simple. Perhaps it was dishonesty solely on the part of her lawyers, but it was dishonesty none the less, and Dr. Ford should not be surprised that this now becomes a point of consideration when looking at her testimony as a whole.

Now to my final point. Let’s look at the plausibility of the event Dr. Ford describes as a whole.

Anyone who studies history knows that when considering the accuracy of a given account of some event, there is a difference between establishing whether the account is possible and whether the account is plausible. To say something is possible is merely to say that there is nothing logically incoherent about what is being asserted, but to say something is plausible is to say that something is truly reasonable in light of all known facts and circumstances.

For example, it may be possible that the real explanation for the disparity between Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh’s testimonies is that Judge Kavanaugh and his friend Mark Judge both have identical twins that they are unaware of. Kavanaugh and Judge’s parents abandoned these twins and then forgot about their existence as a result of some severe trauma. Perhaps, back in 1982, in an effort to destroy the reputations of their counterparts, these twins traveled to the D.C. area, put on a social gathering, and attempted to assault Dr. Ford in hopes that it would one day destroy the reputations of Judge Kavanaugh and Mr. Judge. Today, they laugh diabolically from wherever it is they are hiding.

Is there anything logically incoherent about this explanation? Is there any way to definitively prove that this did not happen? Of course not. In fact, if true, this explanation might explain all the evidence and testimony we have. However, while this explanation is logically possible, it doesn’t change the fact that there is no good reason to think that is what really happened. Therefore, while the account may be possible, it is not plausible.

Dr. Ford’s testimony may not be nearly as ridiculous as the fictitious scenario I’ve just described, but I want you to ask yourself whether it’s plausible given everything you know about the circumstances. Play through the supposed event one fact at a time apart from any emotional overlay.

-At an unspecified time in the summer of 1982, Dr. Ford (who I’m assuming went by Christine in those days) traveled to a small social gathering attended by Brett Kavanaugh, Mark Judge, Patrick “PJ” Smith, one other unknown male, and her close friend Leland Ingham.

-I guess someone drove her there, but we don’t know who.

-There might have been some other people at this gathering, but it was a small gathering, not a party.

-This small group of people was congregated in the living room.

-There was no music playing in the living room, but there was music playing in the vacant bedroom upstairs.

-During the course of the evening, Christine walked up the staircase.

-Brett Kavanaugh and Mark Judge pushed Christine into the upstairs bedroom, and turned up the music so loud that no one could hear her scream.

-No one in the living room questioned why music had been playing in an unoccupied bedroom.

-No one questioned why the music had suddenly been turned up so loud.

-No one wondered why Brett, Mark, and Christine had all gone upstairs (this was after all, a small gathering).

-When Brett and Mark came down the stairs without her, no one (including close friend Leland) inquired as to where she was or what had happened.

-No one asked any questions when Christine came running out of the house.

-Leland didn’t care to ask her close friend Christine why she’d so abruptly left the gathering.

-Christine didn’t care to warn her close friend Leland about what could potentially happen to her if she remained at the gathering.

-Someone took Christine home. We don’t know who.

-Whoever this person was, he/she was apparently the most blind, insensitive person to have ever lived. Taking Christine home, he/she didn’t care to ask why Christine appeared so distraught or why she chose to leave early.

-When she arrived at home, Christine’s family was unable to notice how traumatized she was and therefore made no effort to ask her what happened or seek help. In fact, 36 years later they’ve stayed relatively silent.

-Close friend Leland Ingham never noticed any changes in her friend Christine’s behavior over the next four years. Even now, under penalty of perjury, she has stated that she has no knowledge of any event like the one Dr. Ford has described nor any additional evidence that might help establish her case.

-Thirty-six years later, no one else, named by Dr. Ford or otherwise, has any memory of this small gathering in which these rather distinct and unusual events occurred.

-All four witnesses who were supposedly at this event, to include the close friend Leland, explicitly deny any knowledge that this event ever occurred under penalty of perjury.

Now you be the judge.

It may be possible that an incident occurred exactly as described above, but is it plausible?

I don’t think so.

Quite simply, I think Dr. Ford is lying. The most charitable interpretation of the facts that I could possibly give her is that she is relaying a memory that has been severely corrupted and influenced by the suggestions of others. However, if you have a more plausible explanation, I’d love to hear it.

Living without home internet has been frustrating, especially having not been able to make videos. However, for the time being I’ve decided to take up blogging. It still provides a way for me to give you my 2 cents, and blog posts can easily be uploaded by heading to locations with public Wi-Fi (unlike video uploads, which take hours upon hours to process at such locations).

Those of you who follow me on Twitter are aware that I’ve been tweeting pretty frequently about the sexual assault allegations that have been leveled against Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh. I’m disgusted by the fact that the Democratic Party and mainstream media outlets are treating these allegations as credible. They do so in spite of the fact that none of the accusers have been able to corroborate their stories or provide meaningful information that might allow for a legitimate investigation. Not to mention the fact that these accusations, true or not, have clearly been planned to be released at such a time to maximize the chance that Kavanaugh’s confirmation will be delayed and not out of any genuine concern for justice being done. However, instead of spending this entire article ranting about that, I’d like to discuss what the Kavanaugh accusations and similar stories tell us about the cultural trajectory that the #MeToo movement has put us on.

First, I’m not saying that nothing good has come of the #MeToo movement. It’s certainly not a bad thing that perverts like Harvey Weinstein have been exposed and taken down. However, the #MeToo movement has become something more. The message we’re being given, sometimes implicitly and sometimes explicitly, is that men everywhere and at all times are monsters. Women never lie or exaggerate. In fact, the issue of sexual assault is a very simple matter. If and when a woman claims she was sexually assaulted, regardless of the circumstances or evidence presented, she is to be believed. Any and all discussion about lack of evidence or that the woman may be blowing something out of proportion is simply victim blaming. Finally, any man accused of sexual assault must have his life destroyed. If he’s not sent to prison for life, at least ensure that he’ll never be able to show his face in public without being run off by an army of social justice warriors.

I should hope it’s obvious to everyone how absurd this is. Women never lie? Is there a woman alive that would agree with this assertion? Ladies, how many of you have ever had a female classmate or co-worker tell a lie about you after some perceived slight or in order to push ahead of you in your social circle? If women are willing to lie for such frivolous reasons, what makes you think they wouldn’t lie about sexual assault if they had something to gain from doing so?

Of course, this doesn’t mean that all women who make sexual assault allegations are lying. It simply means that sexual assault allegations must be treated like any other accusation of misconduct. Perpetrators are innocent until proven guilty, and the burden of proof rests on the person making the accusation to substantiate them. Beyond that, it’s relevant to examine whether or not an accuser might have any ulterior motives for making their accusations.

Perhaps most importantly, if and when an accuser is proven to have made false accusations, they must be held accountable. Under any other circumstances, perjury and defamation against another person are rightly condemned as a violation of that person’s rights, yet when it comes to false allegations of sexual assault, everyone is told to look the other way. “Well, we don’t want to punish false accusers of rape because it might deter real victims from coming forward,” we’re told by our feminist overlords.

Really? Does punishing false accusers of other crimes stop real victims from coming forward, or does it deter people from making false accusations?

Let’s consider the recent case of 13-year-old Keith Bailey from Colorado Springs. According to Chadwick Moore of dangerous.com, Bailey was approached by a female classmate who accused him of racism when he changed his Snapchat avatar to a black Bitmoji character. When Bailey did not change the avatar, he faced persistent harassment from his female classmate and a number of other students.

Keith Bailey of Colorado Springs, CO

However, it appears that Bailey’s classmate became convinced that peer harassment was not enough punishment for the horribly racist action of using a black Bitmoji as a Snapchat avatar. She and three other female classmates went to the school’s vice principal and accused Bailey of having sexually assaulted them since this past summer. Bailey was not informed of the exact nature of the accusations the girls made against him, but he was interrogated by school staff for over two hours just before being arrested by police.

By this point, some of you victim sympathizers may be shouting, “But wait! How do we know he didn’t really assault them?” Well, you might consider the following exchange that occurred between Keith Bailey’s mother and the mother of one of the supposed victims. Bailey’s father, Dennis Bailey, reports,

“Her mother gave us a call and said she just found out that Keith had been inappropriately touching her daughter and she just wanted to let us know. She said, ‘I know Keith is a good kid, maybe he just went down the wrong path.’ She obviously believed her daughter. But she said it happened at the football game last week. The problem with that is, my wife was at the football game the whole time. My son was there with his girlfriend and my wife didn’t want him unattended, so she had eyes on him the whole time. My wife tells this girl’s mother, ‘that’s funny, I was there watching the whole time, he didn’t leave my sight and he was no where near your daughter,’” Dennis recalls. “He was hanging out with his girlfriend, he wasn’t running around molesting other girls.” The mother then changed the story, saying it must have been a different football game (Moore, 2018, para. 8).

Now tell me, where do you think these girls got the idea that accusing someone of sexual assault was an effective way to deal with him not sharing their views about what constitutes racist behavior? Further, do you think they would have been so quick to accuse him if they thought there was a possibility that they might face legal consequences if their accusations were shown to be false? Frankly, how many people do you know who wouldn’t lie to get what they want if they knew that they would face absolutely no consequences in the event they were caught?

Brett Kavanaugh and Keith Bailey’s stories should be chilling wake up calls to anyone who isn’t convinced that the #MeToo movement has become a disaster. How many mothers wish to raise a son in a world where even one unsubstantiated accusation can permanently ruin his future career? How many fathers want to have to teach their sons that they must be inherently suspicious of all females, perhaps even wearing a body camera whenever they speak to a female, just in case they ever need to prove that they didn’t commit sexual assault.

What’s worse is that the #MeToo movement can’t continue as it is forever. Eventually, as more and more women start catching on and using false rape accusations to get something they want, society at large will start to wise up. Employers will become much more hesitant to hire females, and people by and large will become more inherently suspicious of sexual assault allegations. As Aesop illustrated in his classic “The Boy Who Cried Wolf,” there can only be so many false allegations before people become distrustful of allegations altogether. What will happen to a real victim of sexual assault who reports her case to a police officer who has dealt with one too many false allegations throughout his career?

My point is this. We need to get back to the correct mindset regarding criminal accusations. First, accusations must be taken seriously, while still acknowledging that alleged perpetrators are innocent until proven guilty. Second, the burden of proof must rest on the accuser while giving the alleged perpetrator adequate opportunity to defend himself. Finally, there must be only one of three different outcomes.

The first possible outcome is that the perpetrator is found guilty and therefore faces the consequences. The second possible outcome is that there is insufficient evidence to prove that the perpetrator is guilty or that the accuser is lying in which case both must be allowed to go on their way. Finally, if there is sufficient evidence that the accuser is lying, she must face the consequences for making such false accusations.

Adopting the #MeToo position will only shift society between two extremes. One extreme will be what we face now where numerous innocent men are raked over the coals and have their lives destroyed as a result of false accusations. The next will be numerous real victims having their cases dismissed as a result of too many false accusers tainting the process. No matter who you are, can you honestly say that either extreme will result in a better society?

Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for -fair use- for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.

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In light of the numerous sexual harassment and sexual assault scandals, I decided to comment on how power corrupts. Sexual harassment on Capitol Hill is a symptom of this, and whatever the solution, it’s not to give the government more power.

Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for -fair use- for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.

HARASSMENT NOTICE
It is not my intention to cause the original video creator to receive any kind of harassment or abuse. While I do use sarcasm and satire, my intention is to provide a counter argument to claims they have made. While I have no control over the feedback you choose to provide, I ask that you avoid any forms of harassment or abuse.

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A number of models in Brazil’s Miss BumBum Contest decided that they would protest sexual harassment by dressing in bikinis made out of meat. I propose that this makes about as much sense as protesting robbery by walking down the streets of the ghetto in a coat made of 100 dollar bills.

Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for -fair use- for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.

HARASSMENT NOTICE
It is not my intention to cause the original video creator to receive any kind of harassment or abuse. While I do use sarcasm and satire, my intention is to provide a counter argument to claims they have made. While I have no control over the feedback you choose to provide, I ask that you avoid any forms of harassment or abuse.

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Ellen Degeneres recently ogled Katy Perry’s big boobs, throwing in a comment that some thought was quite misogynistic. Ellen has vocally spoken out against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein and stated that no woman should have to be sexually harassed or assaulted. This whole endeavor exposes the hypocrisy of feminism and how the litmus test for sexual harassment turns out to be who performed the behavior in question.

Why Ellen’s Birthday Message for Katy Perry is Being Called Controversial:

Ellen Says #MeToo:

Family Guy Footage:

“Peter-assment.” Family Guy. Fox. 21 March 2010. Television.

All content owned by Fox. No copyright infringement is intended.

Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for -fair use- for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.

HARASSMENT NOTICE
It is not my intention to cause the original video creator to receive any kind of harassment or abuse. While I do use sarcasm and satire, my intention is to provide a counter argument to claims they have made. While I have no control over the feedback you choose to provide, I ask that you avoid any forms of harassment or abuse.

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